Drummer Injury Forces Tour Cancellation.

Thursday, January 29th, 2015

Drum and guitar duo The Black Keys have cancelled their European tour dates after drummer Patrick Carney picked up a serious shoulder injury in early January which we previously reported. A band statement read; “We are very sorry to have to cancel our upcoming performances through March 10th. Patrick needs time to heal. We thank all of our fans for their support and we’re looking forward to getting back on the road.”

While the band hoped to simply postpone the European gigs, due to “prior scheduled commitments and venue availability,” the Turn Blue duo were “unsuccessful” in rescheduling the trek and were forced to scuttle the European leg entirely. In total, 17 concerts were cancelled, including six shows in the United Kingdom highlighted by a March 3rd performance at London’s O2 Arena. Three concerts each in Germany and France, most notably a pair of shows at Paris’ Zenith, were also cancelled due to Carney’s dislocated shoulder.

A rep for the Black Keys confirmed that the band will also be unable to perform at the 2015 MusiCares Person of the Year tribute to Bob Dylan. That all-star concert is scheduled to take place in Los Angeles on February 6th, two days before the Grammys, where the duo are nominated for three awards: Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance for “Fever” and Best Rock Album for Turn Blue. The band’s Australian tour, set to kick off April 2nd in Brisbane, and their subsequent summer music festival appearances, including a stop at Governors Ball, are currently unaffected by the injury.

On January 3rd, Carney was taken to a hospital on the island of Saint-Barthélemy after slamming his shoulder on the ocean floor while swimming. The drummer was rushed to the hospital and administered anesthesia so doctors could reset his dislocated shoulder. Carney, who was still in significant pain following the accident, poked fun at the situation by posting photos of his messed-up shoulder in the hospital on Instagram as shown below.

Black Keys drummer injured

Their website reads;

TURN BLUE WORLD TOUR: EUROPEAN LEG CANCELLED

Due to a serious shoulder injury to Patrick, The Black Keys’ forthcoming European concerts, part of their Turn Blue World Tour, have been cancelled up until March 10. Regrettably, due to prior scheduled commitments and venue availability, efforts to reschedule the original dates were unsuccessful; therefore all tickets will be refunded in full at their point of purchase. At this time, it is not expected that any dates after March 10 will be cancelled.

From Dan & Pat: “We are very sorry to have to cancel our upcoming performances through March 10. Patrick needs time to heal. We thank all of our fans for their support and we’re looking forward to getting back on the road.”